Jerry Smith has been the chief
instructor at Crown Point Trading, located in the Empire district of
Coos Bay, for four years this month. His wife, Jane Mitten,
handles all the paperwork, and Jerry, who is retired from his 25 year
career in security and public safety, teaches all the classes.

Jerry is an NRA Certified Instructor with certifications
in home firearms safety, pistol first steps, basic pistol, basic rifle,
“Refuse to be a Victim” training, personal protection in
the home and is an NRA Range Safety Officer. He is also a Certified
Firearms Instructor for the State of Utah and a USCCA (United States
Concealed Carry Association) Affiliate Instructor.

The company offers classes that enable people to apply
for the State of Oregon Concealed handgun License or the State of Utah
Concealed Firearms Permit, or both.

Jerry Smith is a NRA Certified instructor, teaching at Crown Point Trading in the Empire District of Coos Bay.

Jerry explained that “ Many people want the Utah
certification because they travel around the country and especially
Oregonians who travel to Washington State. The state of Washington
honors Utah’s permit, but they do not honor Oregon’s
license. If you have both Oregon and Utah permits, as an Oregon
resident, you’re good in about 33 states to carry a concealed
weapon. The Oregon and Utah classes each take about four hours if taken
separately. We also offer a combined class for both that runs about six
hours. The combined classes are usually held between 8 am and 2 pm on
Saturdays but accommodations can be made for other times and days of
the week.”

The separate classes are usually held Saturday morning
from 9 am to 1 pm, and there are classes available during weeknights.
“If I have a class scheduled (and I can comfortably handle up to
10 people in the classroom) and only one person signs up, I still run
the class,” said Jerry. “ We offer free range time for
anyone who has taken one of our classes as well as several classes that
include range time in the training. We also have women-only classes
working with a female instructor in Coquille. We use the Myrtle
Point Sportsmens’ Club as our shooting range.”

Jerry continued, “We teach firearm and handgun
familiarity, where students will handle, load and unload various type
of revolvers and semi-automatic pistols. Students will learn firearm
safety and defensive shooting techniques but also situational
awareness...being aware of your surroundings, and how to keep from
needing to use your weapon in the first place. Although we can’t
teach every state’s laws on the use of deadly force there is a
common thread that runs through most states laws and we teach those as
well. I also talk about what effects a violent encounter has on
the human body like tunnel vision, auditory exclusion, false memories,
adrenaline dumps...physical and psychological effects of a traumatic
incident. I hope to at least get people thinking about all the aspects
of self defense.”

If you’ve been thinking about taking a concealed
weapons class, call Jerry at 541-888-5590. “ We get a lot of
people sign up for classes when there’s an ugly shooting incident
in the country. If that’s what it takes for people to come to the
class, I just as soon not be so busy,” said Jerry.